Partington residents saw the official opening ceremony of the much-anticipated Redbrook Nature Trail on Saturday 31 May 2008 by legendary botanist, David Bellamy OBE, which included a fun-filled day of entertainment and celebration.

The official opening event followed many months of hard work and dedication shown by Partington Original Women’s Educational & Recreational Group (POWER) in conjunction with Partington Housing Association, (a member of Harvest Housing Group), residents from the area and several other groups including Esc@pe who contributed to the project.

Since Partington Housing Association successfully obtained a grant from the European Regional Development Fund in 2006, all involved parties have channelled much energy into the improvement of an area along the Redbrook River from Warburton Lane, Partington, leading to Coroners Wood. An additional award of £1,000 towards the project also came from Harvest’s Montgomery Neighbourhood Awards in 2007.

Positive improvement work such as: clearing litter and debris from the site, cleaning the river and bulb planting have taken place, thanks to POWER, who formed the steering group for the project and organised various planning and consultation events.

After opening the Nature Trail to the excited audience, David Bellamy was on hand to answer questions regarding the ‘new and improved’ natural surroundings. The children of Forest Gate Primary School sang a celebratory song and activities such as: willow weaving, bird box making and a children’s face painting was organised.

On the official opening day, Peter Wallroth, Neighbourhood Regeneration Officer for Partington Housing Association said:

“This fantastic occasion marks the culmination of a great deal of planning and effort from many people in the community. The Redbrook Nature Trail will benefit the whole present community and will hopefully leave a long lasting legacy for future generations”.